#iHeartOmron Fitness Challenge Week Four

I wouldn’t have known it was the flu, except that I woke up with pink eye on Wednesday and had to go to the doctor for eye drops.

My week didn’t go as well as I’d planned exercise-wise, but I also had virtually no appetite, so it worked out in the end.

{I can’t believe I just wrote that sentence. If I were you, I’d thinkÂ What a nut.Â right now.}

I did manage to get in a couple of workouts, even one heavy-duty Leslie Sansone cardio walking episode, but for the most part, I laid in bed and wallowed.

And coughed. I did a lot of coughing.

I’m still doing a lot of coughing.

The main part of the #iHeartOmron Fitness Challenge is over. It’s really only half over, as I’ll explain below, but today is the day for Before & After weight and measurement loss tallies.

My Results – Weight

I lost almost 7 pounds this week. No kidding. I even stepped off the scale and back on, just to make sure the weight was correct. I really lost 7 pounds this week.Â I’m not sure if it’s the flu or the momentum from the weeks before catching up. I guess it doesn’t matter.

So now I’m down to 308. That’s 12 pounds lost.

I have weighed 300 pounds or more for my entire adult life, since I was 17 years old.Â 299 is in sight, and I almost can’t believe it.

There’s no almost about it.

I really can’t believe that it’s going to happen. I still have doubt.

My Results – Inches

When we started the #iHeartOmron Fitness Challenge, I measured myself. I measured myself again today to see the difference.

Chest – 54″ no change (I think this might be user error. I decided to measure myself in my best bra, a molded-cup underwire. Even though my chest has shrunk noticeably, the cups in the bra don’t shrink, and the measurement doesn’t change. Live and learn.)

Waist – 52″ down to 50″

Hips – 59.5″ down to 57.5″

Thigh – 31.5″ down to 29.5″

My Goal for This Week

My goal for this week is the same as my goal for last week, to get through it â€“ to do my five workouts (my new fancyÂ strapless heart rate monitorÂ arrived, so I’ll be able to use that), to eat well, and to drink enough water. I didn’t do all of my workouts last week, and I cut short the ones I did. I am ready to get back on schedule (hopefully with a lot less coughing and a lot more energy).

Omron Strapless Continuous Heart Rate Monitor

I love exercising with a heart rate monitor. It estimates the calories I’ve burned much more accurately than any activity list or app ever could. Essentially, it uses my weight and my heart rate to calculate the calories I’ve burned.

How awesome is that?

I have always been afraid to try a heart rate monitor that used a chest strap; I assumed the strap wouldn’t fit me. I have an older wrist-model without a chest strap, but I have to stop and hold my fingers on its sensors for 10 seconds each time I want it to register.

When my heart is really pumping, I want it to register a lot, but then I have to stop moving to get a reading. It’s cumbersome.

The new Omron HR-500U strapless heart rate monitor completely solves this problem, monitoring my heart rate directly from my arm without any input from me. I put it on my wrist (it fits with room to spare!), and it measures my heart rate. It even tells me whether I’m in the warm up/cool down zone, fat burning, cardio fitness, or power zone.

I’ve played with my new heart rate monitor, but I haven’t actually exercised with it yet. I’ll tell you next week how it does at estimating calories and all that.

#iHeartOmron Twitter Party

You can celebrate the weight loss success of all the #iHeartOmron Fitness Challenge participants and share tips for working out smarter at a Twitter party on February 20 from 8-10pm eastern. Prizes will be awarded (nice ones, like the products I received for the challenge!), but you have to RSVP first.Â Details and RSVP form are at Mamavation.

The Twitter party is the official end of the #iHeartOmron Fitness Challenge, and the biggest losers will be announced then. I’m working hard for the next two weeks in hopes of scoring one of the top three prizes. Join us for the party to find out if I make the mark!

Hi, I'm Tara.
I am passionate about creating fun, meaningful, and educational experiences for my two young daughters as I inspire them to be lifelong learners who live fully (and frugally). I often write about parenting, learning, food, crafts, Jesus, and travel. I live with my husband, our girls, and our cats near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Read more...